🌱 The Grumpy Optimists #118
The Grumpy Optimist returns for 2024!
Happy Monday and Happy New Year. 👋
For those of you who have been around for a while, welcome back to The Grumpy Optimists. For the newbies who joined since the last episode (surprisingly a lot of you), welcome to your weekly recap of mostly positive news with an occasional dose of me being grumpy about the state of the climate crisis.
New or old, I hope you all feel recharged and ready for 2024. For me, Christmas and the festive period felt like a chance to unwind properly for the first time since a holiday in the Summer. It was much needed.
For the first Grumpy Optimist of the year, we’re looking at the UK energy grid having its lowest ever emissions per kWh, a 70-year low in electricity emissions in Germany and Ireland looks to give nature the same rights as humans. Let’s dig in, shall we?
👀 Articles to read
⚡ UK electricity at its lowest-ever carbon intensity. In 2023, there was a year-on-year decrease in fossil fuels by 22%, with fossil fuels making up 33% of electricity production, the lowest-ever share. Low-carbon solutions like solar, wind, and nuclear made up a whopping 56% of electricity production. As a result, the UK had its lowest-ever carbon intensity of 162gCO2/kWh, a 21.8% decrease from the previous year.
🇩🇪 Germany cuts their carbon too. Thanks to a 70-year low in coal power generation, electricity emissions in Germany fell by 11% last year. A combination of falling energy use, renewable energy generation, and low coal power meant that Germany’s emissions were 46% lower than in 1990. However, it’s not all rosy. Only around 15% of the reductions were likely to lead to long-term savings. Now is not the time to take our foot off the (electric) pedal.
🥵 2023 was the hottest year yet, but 2024 could be the warmest year in recorded history. This is a dose of grumpy news, but it’s the reality we live in. Temperatures are rising year on year, but the influence of El Niño meant 2023 was the hottest year yet, so warm that Ed Hawkins, the man who invented the climate stripes, said that we might even need a new colour.
🚲 Spain tells cities to create bike lanes and low-emission zones or lose funding. Over in the UK, the media and the government would lead you to believe there is ‘a war on motorists’, but in Spain, cities have been told to create more pedestrian and bicycle-friendly towns or lose EU funding.
🔋 Largest clean energy project in U.S. history starts full construction. After a 17-year wait for permits and approvals, an $11 billion clean energy project that will deliver 3,000 MW of green energy has begun construction. The funding will create a 3,515 MW wind farm in New Mexico (the largest in the Western Hemisphere) alongside a 550-mile HVDC line to transport power from central New Mexico to areas as far as California. To put into context the size of this project, Uruguay uses 3,100 MW of power per year!
🇮🇪 Ireland could give nature constitutional rights. Ireland plans to vote on granting legal rights to nature, potentially becoming the first EU country to do so. The proposed rights would be similar to those of humans, allowing nature to exist, flourish, and be protected. Other countries like New Zealand and some in South America have made similar moves. If approved by a referendum, Ireland would be a pioneer in Europe.
🔌 One common charging solution for all. The European Commission is introducing a new law requiring all electronic devices to use a common charging port, USB-C. This will save consumers €250 million per year and reduce electronic waste by 980 tonnes yearly.
🥃 Can whisky wastewater be turned into green hydrogen? Scientists have found a way to turn whisky wastewater into green hydrogen, saving 20.5 billion litres of fresh water a year. With green hydrogen typically requiring lots of freshwater, taking an industry byproduct and using it to create fuel is a win-win. I’ll raise an imaginary glass to that.
🇫🇷 France makes composting compulsory. With one-third of household waste by weight being organic waste, cutting the amount of wasted food and ensuring that it’s not incinerated or landfilled is crucial. France agrees and created new rules in 2024 to separate each business and household's organic waste. It’s a great step, but it should coincide with policy to help minimise waste being produced, too.
☀️ Plans for the UK’s largest solar farm at a former Shell site. A solar park that would generate 350MW and power 133,000 homes for a year is being planned in Wales. Most interestingly, for me, it’s also centred around a former Shell depot. The project is subject to planning and public input, but at 350GW, it would massively outsize the UK’s current largest solar park of 72MW.
This week’s episode was written after seeing the first day of sunshine in what feels like weeks (it’s probably because it is). It was written to some old Fred Again with a hot water bottle on my feet to keep me warm. I’m longing for the sun setting later and some vitamin D to recharge my system and help me work towards those New Year’s resolutions. Stupidly, one of my ‘goals’ is to complete a 130-mile run (don’t ask), but I’d love to know, what are yours? If you tell me in the comments, I’ll give you a free subscription to The Grumpy Optimist for a year (there are no benefits).
Goodbye for now. George, the Grumpy Optimist 💚
My resolution for this year is to get a job helping the environment, hopefully as a data analyst/data scientist for Octopus Energy or something! Love the newsletter George keeps me inspired and hopeful, thank you <3
Great newsletter. Consider tackling the climate impact of condensation trails (contrails) from planes. There is reason for optimism, but also som grumpiness for airlines not tackling this relatively cheap and easy-to-manage climate issue. Best regards, Joachim from blue-lines.org